Chips & Putts: New Nike Spot Follows Rory McIlroy Gearing Up For Major Season
ADWEEK's Gabriel Beltrone noted Rory McIlroy appears in a new 60-second Nike spot via Wieden + Kennedy, Portland, as he "gears up" for The Masters. The ad is an "increasingly frenetic montage, as McIlroy trains for his big dream, waking up at 5:30 every morning, chopping vegetables for smoothies, lifting weights, hitting the driving range, running, lifting more weights and doing it all over again the next day." It is "packed with almost industrial sound design, and the odd snippet of a rattle snake, crescendoing perfectly to the tagline, 'Enjoy the chase.'" Nike also debuted a "fun series of 15-second vignettes" featuring other pros like Tony Finau, Brooks Koepka, Michelle Wie and Patrick Rodgers "honing their skills in odd and sometimes hilarious ways -- practicing after dark, and in hotel hallways" (ADWEEK.com, 4/5).
BRAND AWARENESS: ESPN’s Tom Rinaldi noted Jordan Spieth has “made that rare next step when player becomes product and star becomes brand.” Spieth has deals with top companies including Coca Cola, AT&T and Under Armour, and he said of building his brand, “It is something I knew I needed to get involved in. I knew that it would come with success on the golf course. To be involved with the companies we are involved with and to be a part of their brand, feel like we can now align my brand with the right partners, it’s fun, it really is.” Spieth added, “I imagine we’ve done the right things on and off the course” (“SportsCenter,” ESPN, 4/5).
RICKIE DON'T LOSE THAT NUMBER: GOLFWEEK's Allen Etzler noted Rickie Fowler has "released a series of lighthearted videos of his preparation for the Masters this week in partnership with Mercedes that is being dubbed the 'Drive to Victory' campaign" (GOLFWEEK.com, 4/4). One spot shows Fowler opening up a refrigerator full of famed Masters pimento cheese sandwiches, while another features him picking from a wardrobe that is entirely made up of Masters-green polo shirts (THE DAILY).
GIVING BACK: In Michigan, Bradley MacDonald reported the Meijer-sponsored LPGA tourney in Michigan is back for a third year, "but this time it features a new name" that highlights a charity. The '16 Meijer LPGA Classic for Simply Give tees off June 16 at Blythefield Country Club in Grand Rapids, Mich. Simply Give is a Meijer program "that restocks the shelves of food pantries across the Midwest." Along with the new name, this year's tournament "will feature a new, three-day grand tasting event called the Meijer LPGA Grand Taste." Last year's event was dubbed the Meijer LPGA Classic presented by Kraft (MLIVE.com, 4/4).
